White Fragrance
by Janiqua
Summary: General Caraway brings Julia and a four year old Rinoa to Winhill. There, Julia hears a certain ghost story. [Oneshot tribute to Raine, Julia, and Laguna]


**A/N:** I've looked, and I really don't think this kind of story has been done before. So I decided to write my interpretation. I myself am proud of it. It took me all day to write. Julia, Raine, and Laguna. It's definitely a love story, it's definitely a tragedy, and it made at least me cry. Please, take the time to read it and review. The characters deserve it!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own these characters. I don't own "Eyes on Me."

**ooooooo**

**_White Fragrance_**

**ooooooo**

It was a quaint village, really. One of the coziest she had ever seen. Surrounded by farm land and with houses settled everywhere, even off in the distance, it seemed reminiscent of a fairy tale. The ground was cobblestone with a white mosaic stretched across its central square, forming the shape of a flower with four petals. Considering how pretty much everything in the village seemed to thrive off flowers, such a mosaic was more than fitting, and altogether welcoming.

The flowers bloomed everywhere here. There were closed-in gardens, pots, vases, casks. Even the sills of arched windows were softened by their presence. They decorated the walls of the buildings – even the single mansion in which she would be staying had its walls blanketed by green vines and purple blossoms. It was quite unlike anything she had ever seen back home in Deling City.

Winhill. That was the name of this village, and Julia Heartilly Caraway thought it was beautiful. She was standing outside the car that had brought her, and presently, her husband, General Caraway, was walking around the vehicle to join her, with a dark haired four year old in his arms.

He was a kind man, really. And he had such a gentle face. On duty, he always seemed to be so hard. Cold, even. He was well poised and dignified – not to mention intelligent and powerful. He could intimidate an entire army of Galbadians and commanded utmost respect. But in his eyes, Julia had often seen his soul, and when she looked at him now, with their daughter in his grasp, she did not regret marrying him. No. That was not what she regretted.

Presently, he stood beside her as she exhaled, reveling in the cool, crisp morning air. There was such a variety of fragrances, and breathing them all in a moment later was like breathing in a breath of Heaven. "This place," she whispered blissfully. "It's so different from home."

Caraway grinned. "I know. It's quiet. A week or two spent here, and you'll feel completely rejuvenated."

"A week or two here and I might not want to leave," she teased, looking back at him with shining eyes. Sparkling eyes. Caraway could not help but wonder if she hadn't rejuvenated already, for her eyes were positively aglow. It was why the public loved her so much. As elegant and as graceful and proper as she was, in her eyes there was a heart that took people in and made them feel more alive and more completely free than all the rest of the world ever could.

It was a good thing, he often told himself, that their daughter had her eyes instead of his. He couldn't bear the thought of little Rinoa growing up to take after him. She was his princess. His eyes would be a blemish on her perfectly angelic face.

He turned towards the mansion. It was three stories tall, and brick. There was a balcony above the large wooden front door, and on either side there were an assortment of windows made from stained glass. The flowers and the vines that decorated the building offered such taste that Caraway honestly saw the place fit for royalty. It would be perfect for Julia.

She had been working so hard lately. Before he had met her, she had been nothing more than a pianist playing in the lounge of the Galbadian Hotel. Her dream, however, had been to step up from that, and become a singer. And once she had found her voice, it had not taken her long at all to capture the rest of the country. Today, she was their star.

And why shouldn't she be? She had talent. She had beauty. Compassion. Wit. The public even whispered stories of her past! That once, she had been greatly in love with a low ranking soldier. But what with the war, he had had to leave her in order to fight and fulfill his duty. She had never seen or heard from him again.

Most people found it terribly romantic, and though it did wonders for her career, Caraway found it rather bothersome. There was no privacy to fame, and he could tell that it often hurt Julia to be reminded of her first real love. He had been in the military long enough to understand that when men went missing in action, it left their loved ones feeling no real closure. And without that, wounds rarely ever healed. Because the public found her life so fascinating, she often heard whispers of it among strangers, which left her wounds open to bleed.

Recently, those wounds had been somewhat numbed by her nonstop activities. It was almost as if she believed that if she sang and sang without pause, she might not hear the rumors. That she might be safe from her memories. But in doing so, she had exhausted herself, and now what she needed more than anything else was a little bit of rest. Rest that General Caraway believed she might find in Winhill.

He had been there before, after all. The mansion in which he and his family would be staying was owned by a distant relation – who was actually a good friend of his. For all that they were cousins many times removed, they might have been brothers. Thomas Bauer. He and his wife owned the place, and might as well have owned the entire town. The people there were xenophobic, and if there was ever a place within Galbadian boarders that might offer Julia even a semblance of privacy, it would no doubt be there. At least, that was what Caraway hoped.

"Let's go for a walk later," Julia said, glancing at him. "Just the two of us."

Caraway's gaze bore into hers, and once it was there, he never wanted to look away. But before he could respond to her, the door to the mansion was firmly held open by a butler, and Thomas Bauer himself appeared and started walking down the front steps towards them. A smile was lighting his face.

"Caraway! It's about time you brought your lovely wife here to visit!"

"Hello, Tom!" Caraway turned towards his friend and once he placed Rinoa gently down on her feet, the two of them warmly shook hands. Julia smiled herself, while Rinoa pressed against her father's side and stared up at Bauer bashfully.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you," the man said, turning towards his friend's wife and shaking her hand next. "I've heard so much about you. I'm terribly sorry to have missed the wedding, but I was needed in Esthar City. What with negotiations and all."

As Julia properly and graciously replied, Caraway shook his head and thought about Bauer's words. Galbadia and Esthar always seemed to be fighting for some abnormal reason or other. Tension was constantly in the air between them, and the only time a Galbadian General could find the time for a real wedding would, of course, be during one of the rare lulls between conflicts. And during such lulls, Ambassadors like Bauer needed to be on top of their game. And that was just the way things went and always would go.

"Well now," Bauer turned towards Caraway. "We might as well not stand out here in the cold. Come inside. My man will see to your luggage." Raising an arm towards the door, he waited for Julia to take Rinoa's hand in hers and follow her husband up the steps and inside. The butler stood holding the door open for them, and at Bauer's command, he retreated back outside to get their things.

The inside of the mansion was just as beautiful as the outside, if not even more so. Several intricate rugs blanketed a beautiful wooden floor. The front hall was centered by a huge potpourri of flowers. There was a fancy suit of armor to the left. Two enormous stairwells curved up towards the landing above, underneath of which there was a small rise up to several more doors leading deeper into the mansion. Candelabras decorated the walls, and there were chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. In all honestly, as much as Julia admired her own home, this mansion was lovelier than Caraway's.

"You have a beautiful daughter," Bauer presently noted, looking down at Rinoa for the first time. It was Julia's turn to feel her shy daughter press against her, and she smiled, wrapping an arm around the girl's shoulder.

"She's really not that diffident," Caraway noted, grinning fondly. "At home, she has a willful little spirit. I think the ride down here wore her out a bit."

"That's only to be expected," Bauer nodded. He glanced from Rinoa to Caraway, and then to Julia. "I'm sure that you're all quite tired from the trip. Here. Let me show you to your rooms." He turned towards one of the stairwells and guided them up, never pausing in his conversation with Caraway as they went.

**ooooooo**

Later that afternoon, Julia, Caraway, Bauer, and his wife, Mina, gathered together on the patio behind the mansion for lunch. The tables stood on white marble, and the patio opened up so they might gaze out over the wide fields and meadows that were just another part of Bauer's incredible property.

A servant was pouring wine, and Mina was half listening to the men's conversation and half reading a typed letter. Julia herself was staring out into the distance, thinking of everything and of nothing. It was a beautiful day, and in all her life, she had never seen such a beautiful place.

"Does that mean you're leaving Winhill for good?" Caraway was asking Bauer at present. He sounded both surprised and disappointed by such news.

"Well, from what I can tell, the new Esthar President is serious about keeping the peace," Bauer replied with a shrug. "I've met him on occasion, and he doesn't strike me as the brightest man on the planet. It doesn't seem even remotely feasible that he could be the brains behind _any_ operation, but somehow he was central in overthrowing Adel, imprisoning her, and rewriting Esthar's form of government. The people seem to love him, and they elected him fairly. Because of him, Esthar is a whole new city."

"You make him sound like a saint," Caraway crossed his arms, leaning back in his chair rather skeptically.

"He is not," Mina looked up from her letter critically. Everything about her screamed of aristocracy, from the way she held herself to the way she dressed and even to her accent. She was of first class, and had an air about her that made Julia feel almost like a remarkable fraud. "He is boyish and naïve. He can barely speak a proper sentence, and he associates with this beastly little orange thing."

"A moomba, to be precise," Bauer elaborated. "But despite what my wife calls his boyishness and naivety, there is also this sincerity about him that I have never before seen in politics. He seems to be a good man."

"So you will be living full time in Esthar now?" Caraway asked.

"By his own invitation," Bauer nodded. He took a sip of his wine, and then glanced at Julia. "I've never seen such a city. Perhaps when you recover, you'd be interested in visiting my foreign estate. I'm sure the people of Esthar would love to hear you sing."

Julia stared at him uncertainly for a moment, and then glanced at Caraway. But her husband merely shrugged, raising a glass to his lips as if he could care less whether or not she accepted Bauer's proposal. But she really had no desire to see Esthar. It was hard to sit here in the middle of the Galbadian countryside, actually considering going to a city so advanced and so incredibly infamous. Truth be told, it was hard believing that such a place even existed! Never in her life had she even _once_ considered going there herself one day. After all, it was basically on the other side of the world, and she was nothing more than an average pianist working inside an average hotel. At least, that's what she _had_ been, and sometimes it was hard to remember that she was now in the same class as women like Mina Bauer. No matter how much it seemed, Esthar was no longer out of her vicinity. But even still, Julia did not want to go there. "Maybe when Rinoa grows up a bit."

Bauer grinned, looking at Caraway. "Perhaps now that the war is over, you might become an Ambassador, my friend. Your wife is very diplomatic."

Caraway shook his head. "Well, I most certainly am not, so I am afraid that that is out of the question." Bauer laughed, and Julia quickly took a small sip of her own wine.

"Is it not enough to be a musician?" Mina asked, folding her letter and putting it back inside its envelope. She regarded Julia with piercingly blue eyes. "I myself have always been under the impression that artists have greater influence over the people than politicians do. Is that not right?"

"I'm not singing to change or affect the world in any way," Julia told her quietly. "There really is no international, or even national, meaning to what I do. It's just a living and my passion."

Mina smiled. "Thankfully not everyone earns their living from their passions. Can you imagine how little would be accomplished?"

"I don't know about that, my dear," Bauer interrupted, staring at his wife rather fondly. "The scientists in Esthar are all passionate about their work. In fact, if they weren't, I daresay even less would ever get done."

"You forget about the laborers," Mina reminded him, taking a sip from her own glass. "And other low class workmen. It is true that Esthar is a remarkable city, but under Adel's reign, do you think the people living there were passionate about their unfortunate situations?"

"It's no different in Galbadia," Julia's voice rose ever so slightly, startling even her own husband. "Or anywhere else for that matter. People do what they need to do in order to live. Some are fortunate, but for the most part, things keep getting in the way of their dreams. People can live their entire lives without once ever feeling like they've done something that truly matters to them. They live without living. I pity those people."

Bauer glanced at Caraway, who could only look back at him in awe. The two of them were practically rendered speechless by Julia's powerful words. It was no wonder at all that her voice enchanted millions of Galbadians across the country.

Mina, however, eyed her critically. "When do you feel the most alive, Julia? Or do you pity yourself?"

The woman hesitated while wondering, not for the first time, what kind of world she had married into. And at the same time, she wondered what kind of world she _might_ have married into, if fate had been different. Oh, she did care for Caraway. And she loved Rinoa more than life itself. But… would she have been happier with someone else? With someone who once showed her something… remarkable… in his eyes?

"I feel the most alive whenever I can see real sincerity in another person's expression," she told Mina calmly. "This president you were speaking of earlier. The president of Esthar. He sounds like the kind of person who could make me feel as if life were a gift instead of a burden, if I might only see him looking back at me."

Mina chuckled, taking another sip of her wine. "And yet you'd rather stay in Galbadia than go to Esthar to meet him."

"Yes," Julia raised her own glass. "Because Galbadia is where my family is."

**ooooooo**

In such a large mansion, it had been rather easy for Bauer to have a nursery put together for Rinoa. And now, with the sun setting out the window, Julia found herself walking inside of it in order to put her daughter down to bed. But instead of finding Rinoa happily playing with her dolls on the floor with Bauer's own nine year old son – who had been told to watch her – Julia found the two of them standing next to the window, staring outside rather anticipatively.

Frowning, she walked up to them, and must have been heard by Rinoa, for the girl shrieked and spun around, jumping away as she did so.

Julia stopped short, staring at her daughter in astonishment. "Rinoa! What has gotten into you?"

Bauer's son, Crispin, turned around with a guilty look on his face as tears welled up in Rinoa's eyes. A moment later, the girl was running into her mother's arms, burying her face against Julia's stomach. "I thought you might have been a ghost!"

"A ghost?" Julia carefully handled her daughter so that she might sit down before her without pushing her away in the process. "Why would _I_ be a ghost?"

"It's my fault, miss!" Crispin said quickly. "I told her that the tavern by the bridge was haunted!"

"What?" Julia looked over at him in confusion, all the while stroking the back of her daughter's head. "Why did you tell her that?"

The boy hesitated for a moment, sheepishly looking down at the floor. "Cause it's true…"

Julia stared at him for a moment, and then sighed, shaking her head. She held Rinoa at arm's length, and when the girl tried to look down, Julia gently held her chin up. "There aren't any ghosts, Rinoa. And even if there were, they wouldn't bother you, right?"

Rinoa stared at her mother uncertainly. "Why wouldn't they?"

Julia smiled reassuringly. "Because you're just too well loved. They wouldn't even _think_ about hurting you." She stood up, picking her daughter up in her arms as she went. "It's bedtime, Rinoa. Do you want me to tell you a story?"

"Mmh," Rinoa wearily rested her head against Julia's shoulder. Crispin took that as his cue to leave, and he left remarkably fast. Not the Julia bothered to stop him. Instead, she carried her daughter over to the bed, and after changing her into the pajamas that had been left there for her, Julia helped her under the covers. All the while, she spoke. She told a story about a princess who wished upon a shooting star to find her love, after her love had been taken from her. And after years of separation, one day, the wish came true, and the princess and her knight were reunited and lived happily ever after for the rest of their days.

_Do such wishes ever come true?_ Julia could not help but wonder. In real life, they never seemed to. But, Rinoa was just four years old. She was too young to know the difference between stories and between reality. She would _always _be too young. Everyone would always be too young. That was why reality seemed so cruel. If Julia could, she would protect Rinoa from that for as long as possible. That was the wish she made as she kissed her daughter goodnight.

**ooooooo**

A maid was dusting the front hall of the mansion as Julia walked quietly down the red-carpeted stairs. It was dark outside, and not only were the children now both asleep, but Julia assumed Bauer and Mina were as well. She _knew_ that Caraway was, for she had left their room not even five minutes ago.

"Is it cold out tonight?" Julia whispered as she hastened towards the great front door wearing nothing but jeans and a light pink blouse. Her black hair was worn loose, as it always was after dark.

The maid turned towards her almost suspiciously. "No colder than it was this morning, miss."

Julia peered out a window, wondering if she should take a jacket. "I just need to go for a walk. Clear my head a little bit."

The maid did not respond. It was not her place to. Instead, she turned back to her task at hand, pretending that nothing out of the ordinary was going on.

But Julia wasn't satisfied with that. Ever since lunch, she had been thinking about her own life. Not too long ago, she was no richer than this maid, living a satisfactory life inside the hotel where she worked. She might have married a soldier, remaining in that class for the rest of her life.

But instead, her love had been taken from her. And in her grief, she had turned to Caraway, and had eventually married him. Now, she was practically royalty! Everyone in Galbadia knew her name. And if Bauer had his way, everyone in Esthar would know her name as well! International stardom. If Julia asked for it, she could have it in a heartbeat.

But that wasn't what she wanted. What she wanted was to just go back. She didn't enjoy having conversations with aristocrats. They saw the world differently than she did. Their opinions on the matter were too different. Julia would not have Rinoa growing up to be like Mina! Or like Bauer! Or like… Or like Caraway…

The more Julia thought about it… the more she wished she had waited longer… or prayed harder… or done _something_ that might have brought _him_ back to her. She missed him. She missed playing the piano at the hotel, with him and his friends sitting in their regular seats, listening and watching. She missed those days. And she would do anything… she would give _anything_… to get them back.

_I guess I _am_ finding ghosts in Winhill after all…_

Julia turned towards the maid. "Crispin told my daughter that this town is haunted." The maid tensed and looked back at her almost fearfully. There was enough expression on her face for Julia's skin to crawl. "Is it true?"

"They say it is, miss," she whispered reluctantly. And then she sped up, hoping to offer some kind of reasonable explanation for this lady of sophistication. "But there _are_ chocobos in these hills, and the Ambassador won't have us speak of it here, because he says its all fabrications and such…"

"Why would they say that it's haunted?" Julia asked, feeling an inconceivable amount of curiosity washing over her. The maid stared at her, obviously uncomfortable. But she couldn't very well ignore the woman, so she took a rather deep, deep breath.

"Not too long ago," she began. "Near the end of the war, a man was found floating in the sea. He was barely alive, and brought to Winhill either to die or to recover. The woman who ran our tavern took him in and nursed him back to health. Over time, he became the town's protector. Of course, there were soldiers on hand to fight off Esthar should they try to invade, but there were other monsters that the Galbadians wouldn't go near. This man, however, fought them off."

Julia nodded. "That was very noble of him."

"He wasn't _that_ noble," the maid said with a shrug. "I mean, not like the Ambassador is. Or the General. Or you, miss. He was… Or rather, he _seemed_ to be perfectly carefree. And he _loved_ that little girl."

Julia's thoughts instantly turned to Rinoa, but she wasn't the girl in question at all.

"Ellone," the maid said. "The woman who had saved him was called Raine. And since Ellone's parents had died, she had been raising the girl. And he loved her. Eventually, he grew to love Raine as well, and she loved him back. They were married, and before long, Raine was with child."

Julia couldn't help but smile – even if it was a small, soft smile. "They were happy?"

"Unbelievably happy," the maid assured her. "Until the Esthar soldiers got past the Galbadians. You see, for some reason, Ellone was important to them. And they kidnapped her."

Julia stared at the maid as if she were out of her mind. "I don't believe that… Why? _Why_ would they kidnap a little girl?" Her voice lifted somewhat, and for a moment, neither of the two of them moved an inch, fearful that they might be discovered talking together as if they were friends.

"At the time," the maid continued after a few more seconds of silence. "Sorceress Adel still ruled Esthar. I can only assume that Ellone was a potential heir to the Sorceress' powers. That was what they were looking for back then, and there was no question in anyone's minds that she had been taken by Esthar men."

Julia's face twisted into expressed pain. The maid could, through the shadows, see tears in her eyes. "What happened next?"

"Well," the maid sighed. "The man left. He went after the Esthar soldiers to save Ellone. We didn't hear back from him for months. Raine feared that he wouldn't return in time to see their child's birth. But then, one day, Ellone was returned to the village. Brought back by a close friend of the man's. He himself, I believe, was detained in Esthar."

"Why?" Julia demanded.

"I don't know," the maid admitted. "There were many rumors. Some even believe that the man had died, but that his friend wouldn't admit it to Raine for fear of breaking her heart. In the end, it didn't matter one way or another."

"Why?" Julia heard herself ask again, as the tears in her eyes began to slide down her face.

The maid glanced down at the floor. "I don't know the specifics. But there was some sort of accident. Raine gave birth to a son, but shortly after that, she appeared to have drowned."

Julia turned away, her heart bleeding for this woman she did not know. Back in Deling City, there were always stories in the news. Stories of accidents. Of deaths. Of various tragedies. Julia had heard them all before. But somehow… this one was different. This one… was so much closer to home, and she didn't know _why!_

"Ellone and the boy were sent to an orphanage far away from here," the maid said. "After Raine's death, the man who had returned Ellone to the village came back and took them both away, saying that the boy's father knew the Matron there very well. She could raise them both better than anyone else could, and would protect them and treat them kindly. We've not heard from any of them since. And it's been four years."

"So the ghost…" Julia whispered.

"Is said to be Raine," the maid nodded, looking down. "But only those closest to her have claimed seeing her. The rest of us… we just… well… sometimes we might see lights… or hear… strange sounds. The Ambassador swears they're just cats!" The maid looked up, suddenly sounding desperate. "Oh, please, miss! Don't speak of this to him! He wouldn't like it!"

Julia gazed at her sadly for a second, and then nodded. "It'll be our secret." She turned away then, and opened the front door, pausing only to give her thanks to the maid. And then, she made her way outside, into the darkness.

**ooooooo**

The tavern was not that hard to find, even in the middle of the night. Winhill was most definitely _not_ Deling City – or any other city for that matter. Were it not for the brilliance of the stars and moon, she would have been completely lost.

As it was, however, she had never experienced such a haunting hour. What with the ghost story, and now her out on a walk in the middle of the country! She must have lost her mind.

But this was where Raine once lived. And for whatever reason, Julia felt like she could relate to this woman. After all, they both understood what it meant to lose the one they loved. They both knew what it was to wait desperately… To wonder without a moment's pause if they would _ever_ see their beloved again! They both knew that pain. They had both lived it. From what Julia had heard of Raine, she was a woman of great strength. Of great compassion. To be willing to take in a child, and then to take in a fully grown man! – and then to see him on his feet again. To love him. To spend a lifetime with him if she could. She was the kind of woman Julia respected. She had the kind of love Julia craved.

_I would have rather been in her place…_

The tavern was closed. Even in the day, it looked like the door was boarded up. No one lived there anymore. No one drank drinks there anymore. It had been deserted four years ago. No wonder they thought it was haunted.

Ever so carefully, Julia quietly pried the board off the door, and then slipped inside. At first, she couldn't see a thing. But then, the light from the moon shined through the stained glass window to her right, and her eyes began to adjust.

There were circular tables… White centerpieces shaped like flowers… A bar in the back. Somewhere, she could smell wine. Walking farther into the room, Julia noticed an old, warped staircase to her left. Time had not been kind to this place. But it wasn't unsalvageable. Not yet, anyway.

Feeling a wave of emotion welling up inside her soul, Julia felt her legs rush towards those stairs. The next thing she knew, she was falling. She landed heavily against those brittle steps, tears rushing down her face.

How long had she waited before she had given up? A year? Eighteen months? Now she was married, and if Laguna were still alive, she'd have no chance to be with him! Why hadn't she waited? _Why?_ She had Rinoa now, that was true. But that alone didn't change the fact that she had given up on her true love within a heartbeat!

Raine had waited. She had died… But at least she had waited. Isn't that what Laguna deserved? Shouldn't Julia have been that considerate? What if Laguna were to find her now? Like this? Would it break his heart? It had already broken hers.

"Whenever sang my songs, on the stage, on my own," Julia's voice softly sang out. It was choked, and through her tears it was fragmented. But it was the song she had written because of _him_. Laguna. It was for him. It was all she had left. "Whenever said my words, wishing they would be heard."

_I saw you smiling at me. Was it real or just my fantasy? You'd always be there in the corner of this tiny little bar._

"My last night here for you," she kept singing, because that was all she could do. That was all that kept her heart from shattering. "Same old songs, just once more." What wouldn't she give to have that night back again! _Just once more…_ "My last night here with you? Maybe yes. Maybe no."

_I kind of liked it your way. How you shyly placed your eyes on me. Oh, did you ever know that I had mine on you?_

Her voice lifted. It was still choked. It was so brittle. But… then again… so was she. "Darling, so there you are, with that look on your face, as if you're never hurt, as if you're never down! Shall I be the one for you who pinches you softly but sure? If frown is shown then I will know that you are no dreamer."

_So let me come to you close as I wanted to be. Close enough for me to feel your heart beating fast. And stay there as I whisper how I loved your peaceful eyes on me. Did you ever know that I had mine on you?_

Something happened then. The fragrance in the air changed. Julia stopped singing, and through her tears, she looked towards the window through which the moonlight was pouring in. It seemed brighter now. It seemed whiter.

Slowly, Julia rose. She walked towards the window, wiping her eyes with the backs of her hands. "Raine?"

A woman turned around and glanced at her. She had such a gentle, beautiful face. And it brightened when she smiled.

A moment later then and she was gone. Julia wasn't even sure that she had been there at all.

But…

There _was_ a kind of fragrance in the air. A fragrance that did not come from any flower. And _that _lingered well until dawn.

**ooooooo**

**A/N:** Thank you all for reading. Please don't forget to review.


End file.
